Summary
Project designers who draw up or revise regional development policy and guides must have obtained accreditation from the Minister of Spatial Planning.
The Territorial Development Code [CoDT] establishes two types of accreditation:
- Type 1 accreditation allows holders to draw up or revise municipal development policy [SDC] and multi-municipal development policy [SDP].
- Type 2 accreditation allows holders to draw up or revise local guidance policy [SOL] and municipal guides on urban development [GCU].
The local authorities appoint project designers who may be natural or legal persons.
Key points
Accreditations are granted for an unlimited period of time. They also may be withdrawn, after a warning, if an approved project designer does not comply with obligations in the Territorial Development Code.
Some documents do not require the designer to be accredited:
• The preparation or revision of a local guidance policy [SOL] covering an area of less than two hectares or designated for use as a non-development zone.
• The revision of a municipal guide on urban development [GCU], or part of a GCU that applies to part of a municipality that is implemented by the municipal councillor for spatial planning and urban development [CATU].
In detail
Type 1 accreditations [SDC / SDP]:
• The applicant must be a legal person and have a multidisciplinary team that has complementary expertise in the fields of urban development, spatial planning and the environment.
• The legal person must have among its staff or collaborators at least one natural person (accredited to sign policies [SDC / SDP]) who is linked to the legal person (by contract or agreement) and must:
- have a higher education qualification comprising at least 60 credits in the field of urban development and spatial planning; or
- have relevant experience, i.e. have drawn up or revised (or been part of the team that drew up or revised) at least three municipal or multi-municipal development policies (or documents with a similar purpose adopted in another region or in another Member State of the European Union).
Type 2 accreditations [SOL / GCU]:
• The applicant is a natural person, or legal person whose corporate purpose relates to urban planning or development.
• The authorised representative (the person authorised to sign the SOL / GCU) must have:
- a higher education qualification of at least 60 credits in the field of urban development and spatial planning; or
- a degree in civil engineering and architecture or architecture, demonstrating that the course included at least 10 credits in the field of urban development and spatial planning; or
- relevant experience, i.e. have drawn up or revised (or been part of the team that drew up or revised) at least three local guidance policies or municipal guides on urban development (or similar documents adopted in another region or in another Member State of the European Union).
The local authorities that engage accredited project designers have the recognised expertise for drawing up or revising the policy and guides.
An accredited design office may submit tenders for contracts relating to municipal and regional planning.
An application for type 1 or type 2 accreditation, together with the supporting documents, should be submitted to the relevant authority.
It should include:
- The application form, stating the type of accreditation sought.
- The degree(s) of the applicant(s) and, where applicable, of the members of the multidisciplinary team.
- A list of projects completed in the field.
- The articles of association of the legal person.
Within 20 days of receiving the application, the authority will send an acknowledgement of receipt or a list of the missing documents to the applicant.
Within 30 days from the date that an acknowledgement of receipt for the complete application was sent, the Minister for Spatial Planning will notify the applicant of the decision.
The authority is responsible for publishing the decision in the Belgian Official Gazette.
The authority will notify the applicant of the decision.
